News

Positive message on Pembroke crime

“Crime is lower and we are detecting more, I would say that’s an improvement,” Inspector Shaun Bowen from Dyfed- Powys police told Pembroke town councillors recently.

Inspector Bowen, who covers Pembroke, Pembroke Dock and Tenby, said there had been 266 crimes in Pembroke since April, with 108 (40%) of those detected.

There were 308 crimes for the same period last year and the detection rate was 36%, meaning 42 fewer crimes were committed this year and the detection rate was 4% higher.

Inspector Bowen said significant improvements had been made in tackling criminal damage, with 31 fewer incidents compared to the same period last year, accounting for the majority of the 42 fewer crimes.

Inspector Bowen said he thought the fall in these types of offences was due to people having less money to go out drinking, as well as having officers in the right places at the right time.

“There are fewer people out and about, fewer people drinking, fewer people causing criminal damage,” he added. But drug-related crime in Pembroke has gone up six times throughout this year, accompanied by an increase in shoplifting offences to fund drug habits.

Inspector Bowen said mephedrone, known as MCAT or meow meow, was a “major issue”, not just in south Pembrokeshire, but across Wales, with users as young as 13.

He said at least 30 people had been targeted for supplying controlled drugs in the area and he was looking into getting a team together just for south Pembrokeshire.

Councillors were told a new system was in place to monitor calls about antisocial behaviour and the police were working with Pembrokeshire County Council to tackle the problem, but it was still early days and there was more work to be done.

He said the force was starting to direct noise complaints to the council because of a need to streamline services.

He said: “You may have heard police are not doing this and not doing that. We are the police but we do not deal with everything.”